angela hormberg

Tag: Tet or Teth

  • Psalm 119:65-72

    Psalm 119:65-72

    Tet or Teth

    Commonplace –

    “Teach me good judgment and knowledge: for I have believed thy commandments.

    Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now I have kept thy word” (Psalm 119:66-67).

    These two verses represent the idea of Tet or Teth, which is the potential of man, either for good or evil. Here David indicates that he had gone astray, but, then, he turned back to God.

    Matthew Henry notes the following regarding these verses:

    “Sin is going astray; and we are most apt to wander from God when we are easy and think ourselves at home in the world. Prosperity is the unhappy occasion of much iniquity; it makes people conceited of themselves, indulgent of the flesh, forgetful of God, in love with the world and deaf to the reproofs of the word” (Henry 572).

    Thankfully, God does not leave us in this unhappy state.

    “God often makes use of afflictions as a means to reduce those to himself who have wandered from him. Sanctified afflictions humble us for sin and show us the vanity of the world; they soften the heart, and open the ear to discipline. The prodigal’s distress brought him to himself first and then to himself” (Henry 572).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 119.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 119: Tet or Teth

    Psalm 119: Tet or Teth

    Part 9: Tet or Teth verses 65-72

    The ninth part is Tet or Teth, which is the ninth letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

    The following information is from the website BJE:Your Jewish Journey.

    “The letter TET, as the number nine numerically, represents general goodness.

    The Hebrew word ‘tov’ (good) begins with the letter TET. The first time TET appears in the Torah is in Genesis 1:4, in the word tov.

    The numerical value of the letter TET signifies truth and eternity. This is due to its unique feature that all multiples of the number nine are equal to nine in their reduced value. According to Gematria (Jewish numerology) the word for truth (’emet’), equals nine when reduced, as do many other words pertaining to these Divine qualities.

    TET is the central consonant in the word ‘mateh’ (staff), signifying the twelve tribes of Israel who were referred to as staffs.

    The word for pure (tahir) as well as impure (tamah), both commence with the letter TET. This suggests that only God, symbolising Divine goodness, has the power to produce pure from impure. In this way the TET unites both pure and impure to create one entity” (“Tet”, BJE).

    The website Hebrew4Christians notes that “Tet represents the two possibilities of man” (“Tet”, Parsons).

    Works Cited

    “Tet”. BJE: Your Jewish Journey. NSW Board of Jewish Education, https://bje.org.au/knowledge-centre/jewish-languages/hebrew-alphabet/tet/ , Accessed 17 June 2025.

    “Tet”. Hebrew4Christians. John Parsons, https://www.hebrew4christians.com/Grammar/Unit_One/Aleph-Bet/Tet/tet.html, Accessed 17 June 2025.

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 119.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg